Thursday, July 11, 2013

But... I did paint a room. Being up near the ceiling was pretty miserable on those hot days, but I'm really happy with the results.

(After)

(Before)

Previously, the only people who had stayed in our guest room had common DNA with us, and were so relieved that they no longer had to sleep on an air mattress in the same room as the baby that they overlooked the dismal nature of our guest room. The room also served other functions. I intermittently use the room for sewing. (Let's be honest, I'm a knitter). Also, all but one of the closets in our Victorian house are deep as a shoe box and as wide as the door. Newborn items not currently in use languished here, since there was nowhere else to put them. But, with house guests on the horizon, I needed to do better.

This is the third home where I have painted a room this color. For the first few days after painting, you'll think you left a light on because of all the warmth and brightness it adds. After painting (Behr ultra with primer- Brandy Butter satin), I turned the bed at an angle to create a storage nook for all the baby things. Then I corralled all the sewing items in a box and draped a quilt over it.

Room paint: 2 gallons @ 29.98, Home Depot

Trim paint: found in the cellar

Peacock Curtains: $50 for 6 yards, fabric.com

Drape pulls: $5, Wally World clearance

Bed spread: repurposed damask table cloth

Frames, basket, toiletries dish: $2, thrift store

So, for just over $100 ($150 if you throw in the bed and dresser I picked up secondhand last year), our guest room became welcoming and warm.

I don't subscribe to a faith tradition that encompasses The Secret. But I had been wishing for an area rug for the playroom (but not enough that I was willing to give up the one from the master bedroom.) Voila! My good friend's neighbor was giving one away. A good shampoo and we were in business.

I hadn't put any effort into decorating this room after my mother in law and I painted it in January. It's a creamy brown which could be accessorized any number of ways. The red works!

Well, if the floor got a new covering, so should the windows! I replaced the roller blind with this family heirloom tablecloth that had not seen the light of day since the arrival of little hands mounted to a tension rod in the window frame, and mounted a red tablecloth that has never looked right in this house on the rod for when more coverage is needed.

Now, to figure out shelving...

The fabric for the guest room curtains also arrived this week. After a year of assiduous thrifting, I gave up on locating secondhand print curtains (much easier to come by in Boston) and bit the bullet. And since it's easier to match textiles to paint than the converse, I can pick a paint color.

My friend (the same one with the rug bestowing neighbor) and I had a no cost decorating spree on Saturday, relocating things from different rooms. We replaced a set of silver bookends and blue and white pottery with these books in the living room.

I am finally happy with my dining room! For a long time, I felt I was fighting its 1880s bones, but I think everything shook out in the end. We moved all the red serving pieces (which I was using as a segue to the turquoise and red kitchen) and replaced them with blue and white serving pieces from around the house. A few old pictures from upstairs bedrooms came down, and everything looks calming and historically consistent.

On to the kitchen! I have a narrow shelf above the sink. It can only be accessed via stool, so it's not a great storage space. But the cord for the lap was dead center, and I wanted to cover it up. Enter the book ends from the living room and smell pretty cake pans.

A platter provided a focal point over the stove, in keeping with other displayed kitchen tinware.

And the frequently accessed rugs found a more accessible home.

I have been working on a hooked rug for my son's room, which has stalled due to running out off old blue and white fabric/garments.